The world wide web is a treasure trove of content. Every single day, it churns out a huge amount of creative stories, memes, art and more. Unfortunately though, amongst the useful information, there is also a lot of unverified and false content doing the rounds on the internet. A while back, actress Nargis Fakhri had to deal with a hoax pregnancy story.
And now, a fake death report of former cricketer Sanath Jayasuriya is being circulated online.
The source of all the confusion is said to be a CBTV news report that claims he passed away in Canada.
This news is so shocking & sad…https://t.co/NvinJ227k2
— Arshad Warsi (@ArshadWarsi) May 27, 2019
The article says,
“Sanath Jayasuriya sustained injuries when a Honda Civic vehicle knocked him down after it failed brakes in front of the Toronto Mall yesterday. He was rushed to the hospital but passed on due to life-threatening injuries.”
A lot of fans were jolted after reading the story. Actor Arshad Warsi and many others were shocked and took to Twitter to express their dismay. In a now-deleted tweet, cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin asked, “Is the news on Sanath Jayasuriya true?? I got a news update on what’s app but see nothing here on Twitter!!”
All this prompted the man himself to debunk the false stories and tweet about his well being.
Please disregard fake news by malicious websites regarding my health and well being.
I am in Srilanka and have not visited Canada recently.Please avoid sharing fake news.— Sanath Jayasuriya (@Sanath07) May 21, 2019
The relief that netizens felt after his tweet was palpable.
Thank god… the world loves you a lot … https://t.co/915NjGaNik
— Arshad Warsi (@ArshadWarsi) May 27, 2019
Thank God you're safe. I received that fake article on WhatsApp today. My husband had tears in his eyes. I told him you're ok. The smile is back. Stay blessed.
— Priti Prashant Prabhune 🇮🇳 (@dona3659) May 27, 2019
So relieved.
— Chirag (@gladiatorchirag) May 27, 2019
Thank God. Stay Blessed Sir. Lots of Love and Respect from India.
— Mrudu 🇮🇳 (@mrudu_malay) May 28, 2019
So relieved that you’re fine sir , wish you a long life ahead 😇
— mudasir bhat (@mudasirbhat25) May 26, 2019
So, if anyone shares this fake story with you on social media the only thing to say is #ShutTheFakeUp.